Method and apparatus for electrical load control network

ABSTRACT

The methods and apparatus described enable automatic configuration, or commissioning, of controller devices and load control devices through a low voltage communication network controlled by one or more controller devices. These methods and apparatus further enable expansion of the load control system by connection of additional loads and or load control devices and or controller devices which will reinitialize the low voltage communication network and automatically reconfigure the controller devices and load control devices connected to the network.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from copending U.S. provisional patentapplication 61/215,301 filed May 4, 2009.

FIELD OF THE INVENTIONS

The inventions described below relate to the field of electrical loadcontrol systems and more specifically to open topology electrical loadcontrol networks.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONS

Electrical load control systems have developed from simple knife switchcontrols to relay control networks with sensors and switches and networkcontrol management systems. Simple and complex networked load controlsystems require strict attention to the network topology required forthe hardware being used. Additionally, once properly wired, loads andcontrols require special tools to link a specific sensor and or controlto a specific load.

SUMMARY

The methods and apparatus disclosed are directed to an electrical loadcontrol system that includes a controller device that is electricallycoupled to load control devices. The system is preferably configured tocontrol or operate any electrical load in response to control signalsgenerated by the load control devices. Load control devices are manuallyand automatically activated switches as well as motion sensors, lightsensors, heat sensors or a combination thereof. The load control devicesare electrically coupled to the controller device via cables and cableconnectors to form a communication and low voltage network. The cablesand cable connectors are, for examples CAT-5 cables with RJ-45connectors.

Load control devices generate control signals to control the applicationof electrical line power to electrical loads. Additionally, each loadcontrol device has what is referred to herein as an automatic initialcommissioning or configuration feature. Automatic initial commissioningallows a new control device to be connected or integrated into thesystem network and automatically operate according to the automaticconfiguration and communication protocol in the controller devices. Theautomatic configuration protocol initiates when the controller device ispowered-on by the network, whereby the controller device or devices onthe network automatically run a self-configuration or self-commissioningprogram and notify the controller device and/or other controller deviceswithin the system what kind of control device it is as well as its rank,seniority or priority.

Alternatively, selective commissioning may be accomplished through loadcontrol devices transmitting configuration commands to one or morecontroller devices to override the automatic configuration and establishan alternative commissioning or configuration.

A controller device has the capability to initiate a commissioning orconfiguration mode for all the devices connected to the entire lowvoltage communication network. Automatic configuration or commissioningcan be initiated from any component connected to a low voltagecommunication network that is acting as a controller device and does notrequire a separate commissioning tool or a specific commissioningcontrol device on the network.

The electrical load control system does allow for use of a commissioningtool for the convenience of an installer and user for complex layouts orre-commissioning once the load control system is installed. However, useof separate configuration tools is completely optional. Allconfiguration can be done using just the components in the system.

The electrical load control system uses a network model that isindependent of any external network connection, topology or protocol.Capability may be built into all controllers or just specific models ofcontrollers for expanding control to multiple rooms and multiple typesof loads. In this context, a “room” may literally be a single spacebounded by walls, floor and ceiling, such as a conference room, or itmay be a series of rooms, such as a pod of classrooms, or it may be alarge convention hall that may be partitioned. As such, the “room” isreally the extent of the network and not a specific physical space.

The disclosed electrical load control system is based on a free topologywiring scheme that allows any suitable network topologies. e.g., loop,star. wheel, etc. This frees both the wiring designer and the wiringinstaller from burdensome and time consuming processes that are requiredusing other topologies that require very specific wiring layouts. Lesstime and less resources are used in design and installation. Thus,energy savings are actually realized sooner in the home or facilitydesign and in the construction process than with conventional systemsthat require careful wiring layouts in design and installation.

The methods and apparatus described enable automatic configuration, orcommissioning, of controller devices and load control devices through alow voltage communication network controlled by one or more controllerdevices. These methods and apparatus further enable expansion of theload control system by connection of additional loads and or loadcontrol devices and or controller devices which will reinitialize thelow voltage communication network and automatically reconfigure thecontroller devices and load control devices connected to the network.

The devices and methods described below provide a system for controllingthe application of electrical power to electrical loads. In addition toa power network interconnecting the electrical loads to line power, thesystem includes a low voltage communication network interconnecting atleast one controller device and one or more load control devices. Eachcontroller device provides electrical power to the low voltagecommunication network and each load control device receives electricalpower from the low voltage communication network as well as transmittingone or more identification signals and one or more control signalsthrough the low voltage communication network. The one or more controlsignals indirectly control the application of electrical power to theelectrical loads. Each controller device includes a configuration meansand processing means. The processing means for receiving and processingidentification signals from each of the load control devices, the othercontroller devices and the loads. The processing means using theconfiguration means to generate and transmit configuration signals tothe load control devices and the other controller devices. Theprocessing means further receiving and processing control signals fromthe power control elements and directly controlling the application ofelectrical power to electrical loads according to the control signalsand the configuration signals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electrical load control system.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an alternate electrical load controlsystem.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a load control device.

FIG. 4 is a front view of an alternate load control device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONS

Electrical load control system 10 of FIG. 1 controls the application ofline or house power 11 from line power network 12 to loads 20 in space13. Low voltage power and communication network 14 interconnects one ormore controller devices such as controller device 15 to one or more loadcontrol devices such as switch 16, sensor switch 17, multi-switch 18 andsensor 19. Loads 20 may be any electrical load such as lights, heaters,HVAC, blinds, motors or other load.

Controller devices such as controller 15 in controller level 22, supplylow voltage power to each load control device in load control level 24using low voltage power and communication network 14. Controller 15receives any suitable power such as line or house power 11 for internaluse as well as for supplying to the loads 20. Controller devices such ascontroller 15, directly control power delivered to a load such as loads20. Controller devices may also be provided as plug load controllerssuch as controller device 26 which are built into electrical socketssuch as socket assembly 27 to control power to loads plugged into thesocket such as load 28. Plug load controllers generally do not providelow voltage power to load control devices but may be configured to doso.

Load control devices in load control level 24 provide control signalssuch as load control request 29 through low voltage power andcommunication network 14 and also display the status of the load orloads that the load control device controls such as switch, switcharray, sensor including multiple sensors in a single device or remotecontrols.

Low voltage power and communication network 14 provides communicationpath and power path between controller devices in level 22 and loadcontrol devices in level 24 using suitable cabling and connectors, andincluding a suitable communication protocol.

Electrical loads in load level 20 are the line power consuming devicesbeing controlled by the system e.g., lighting, HVAC, shades, etc.,wherein the control is typically controlled application of energy, linepower to the load such as on/off, dimming, motor speed, etc.

Electrical load control system 30 includes a free topology low voltagecommunication network 31, and load control devices in load control level24 such as switches, sensors and the like may be connected in anycombination between themselves and/or the controller device or devicesin controller level 22 which only needs to be somewhere in the network.There is a practical limit on the number of load control devices, aswell as controller devices in multi-controller configurations, due todesigned-in capacity limitations in the low voltage power andcommunication network 14 as noted above. Furthermore, the “freetopology” does not require terminators thereby reducing installationerrors. Such a system can be based on a current loop scheme, but anysuitable network configuration that does not require termination couldbe used.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, each load control device such as loadcontrol device 32 has an indicator, preferably an LED indicator or anLCD display, such as indicator 33 that shows the status of the load towhich it is configured or bound and that it controls. In a firstconfiguration, an indicator on each load control devices is ON whenelectrical line power is applied to the load and is OFF when noelectrical line power is applied to the load.

In an alternate configuration, load control device 34 includes two ormore load control assemblies such as first load control button 35 andsecond load control button 36. The load control device must receive aconfirming message such as confirmation signal 37 from controller device26 that load 28 is truly ON before the load control device 34 candisplay the ON status by illuminating indicator 35A. This improvementallows an error condition to be sent to a load control device anddisplayed accordingly. LED blinking patterns or multiple LEDs may beused to indicate the status of loads that may have multiple levels ofoperation, such as a dimming level or a bi-level setting.

Controller devices preferably have separate switches or power controlelements such as power control elements 15A, 15B, 15C, 15D and 15E suchas for applying electrical line power to the load or loads connected tothem. This is useful for testing purposes during installation.Controller devices and load control devices also preferably have statusindicators such as component health or operational status, which can beseparate or can be a single indicator that performs multiple functions.For example, a single LED may be used to indicate power “on” and loadhealth status.

Status indicators may also be different from load health indicators,e.g., by using different color LEDs, so that the status or “health” ofthe component can be easily differentiated from the load power status.In another configuration, the prominence of a health indicators isminimized to minimize distractions to users except in the case ofactivation of a health monitor. Since the low voltage power andcommunication network 14 is purposefully limited in the number ofcomponents that can functionally interconnect through it, it is alsoimportant for overload monitoring on the network in the case that toomany components are connected. Overload monitoring preferably includes atechnique to disable network power as needed and indicate this faultcondition.

The electrical load control system includes the capability for automaticas well as manual commissioning or configuring of load control devicesand corresponding loads in each and every component of the systemwithout the need for special commissioning tools or complex protocols.

In order to identify each component of the system, a standard MediaAccess Control (MAC) address is assigned at the time of manufacture toeach component. The preferred technique is to have the identitypreassigned, however, any unique identification scheme may be used.Since the MAC address of every single device is unique, the value of theMAC address is used to assign Master/Slave, priority status, rank orheirarchy for devices interconnected through the system. For example,controller devices may be configured in a master/slave relationship sothat only one controller device on the network establishes the automaticcommissioning assignments.

In a preferred configuration, the controller device having the highestvalue MAC address is the master in a multi-controller configuration suchas controller device 38 in electrical load control system 30. Inaddition, MAC address blocks are reserved for families of products tocreate an inherent hierarchy. For example, a controller device designedto drive 2 loads such as controller device 39 will automatically beassigned a MAC address that will be higher than any controller designedto drive only one load such as controller device 40, thereby ensuringthat the 2-load controller will be the master in a configurationemploying both a 2-load and a 1-load controller as in space 41. Thisdual use of the MAC address for prioritization is unique and providestwo advantages in a self-commissioning network: a) it provides a way forall devices on a network to establish a hierarchy for the purposes ofcontrol and communication within the network; and 2) it provides a wayto ensure that certain devices are always assigned a higher ranking orpriority than other family devices to advantageously utilizecharacteristics in certain devices that are not present in otherdevices.

Upon the initial application of system, house or line power 11, eachdevice interconnected in a network, such as devices in levels 22 and 24,broadcasts its MAC address to all other devices connected to thenetwork. The controller devices in level 22 arbitrate to work out whichone is the master if multiple controller devices are installed such asin networks 31 and or 42, otherwise the single controller device is themaster by default. The master controller then uses the established MACaddress precedence to assign identifiers to each controlled load in thesystem. Controller device identifiers such as identifier 43 are assignedin ascending order starting with the master controller (highest MACaddress). For example, a two-load master controller would be assignedload identifiers LDI and LD2, while a slave two-load master controllerwould be assigned load identifiers LD3 and LD4. The same two advantagesnoted above for device prioritization hold true for using the MACaddress for load identification, i.e., a hierarchy of loads is easilyestablished and certain loads will always be higher in theprioritization than other loads, which may facilitate installation. Forexample, it will be easy to wire emergency lighting to a mastercontroller device by simply inspecting the MAC address printed on thecontroller's label thereby ensuring that emergency lighting always getsthe highest enumerated load identification that may facilitatestandardization in a large commercial installation. In addition, themaster controller device preferably assumes full responsibility forsupplying power to the load control devices so that multiple controllersare not all trying to supply power. However, other controller devicesmay be asked to supply additional power (in parallel) depending on thenumber of controller devices attached to the network and the powerhandling capability of the network media.

In likewise manner, the load control devices in level 24 are enumerated.For example, multiple two-button switch devices on the network havetheir buttons numbered according to the MAC address hierarchy such thatthe highest MAC address switch is assigned switch identifiers BT1 andBT2, the next highest MAC address switch is assigned identifiers BT3 andBT4, and so on. This scheme may also be used to facilitate installation.Sensor devices, such as occupancy sensors or daylighting sensors, aresimilarly self-identified. Plug load devices are also similarlyself-identified. Such a configuration is cumbersome in prior art systemsthat require careful wiring installation, mapping and commissioning withadvanced commissioning tools.

Once load and device identification is complete, the master Controllerbroadcasts a message 44 to the network that all devices should performtheir specific automatic or self-configuring (self-commissioning)algorithm such as algorithm 45 in controller device 40. Each device isprogrammed using an algorithm in the controller device that designatesor binds load control devices to loads in a way that covers most loadcontrol scenarios while maintaining adherence to energy-saving buildingcode requirements. Switches with multiple buttons will bind theirindividual buttons to loads such that the first button is bound to thefirst load, the second button is bound to the second load, and so on. Ifthere are more buttons than loads, the remaining buttons remain unboundand indicate this status when pushed. For example, a bound button mayturn on its LED indicator when its load is activated by a button presswhereas an unbound button may simply flash its LED indicator a few timeswhen pressed. If there are more loads than buttons, the last remainingbutton is bound to the remaining loads. For example, if there are 2buttons and 5 loads, then button 1 controls load 1, button 2 controlsloads 2 through 5. This technique ensures that every load is bound, orconfigured to a switch on a load control device. In simple installationswhere the number of buttons equals the number of loads, binding is doneon power-up and the installer need not perform any other tasks. This isespecially true if the installer is trained to pay attention to the MACaddress hierarchy when connecting controller devices to theircorresponding loads. Controller devicess with more than one load mayhave their internal load hierarchy for the controller printed on themfor easy reference during this process. For example, controllers withtwo relay outputs may have the relays labeled A and B so the installerwill know that relay A will be assigned the lowest load number for thatcontroller. In addition, testing of the installation is easy since theinstaller will know exactly how the system will perform on power-up.Thus, the installer does not need to spend extra time commissioning orbinding switches and loads with a commissioning tool therefore, the costand schedule of an installation arc both improved.

An occupancy sensor such as sensor 46 may be treated like a one-buttonswitch wherein it is assigned to all controller loads during initialself-configuration. This helps meet energy saving standards onceself-configuration is completed, but without the need to perform complexmanual configuration to meet those same standards. In addition, theoccupancy sensor may be automatically configured for energy saving modesof operation, for example, the sensors may be automatically configuredto manual on/automatic off operation for only the highest numbered loadand automatic on/off for the remaining loads (automatic refers to thesensor controlling the state of the load directly). Daylighting sensorssuch as sensor 47 may be similarly self-configured, but some manualconfiguration is anticipated since mapping of particular lighting loadsand daylighting sensors to the proximity of windows, skylights, or workspaces may not have been done. Also, in the preferred embodiment, plugloads are mapped only to occupancy sensors and not to switches duringself-configuration since most installations prefer that sensors controlplug loads; some manual configuration is also anticipated since thelayout of cubicles and other workspaces may be not known at the time ofinstallation.

The electrical load control system such as system 30 automaticallyself-configures to a basic state of operation that may be suitable formany installations and that meet minimum requirements for energysavings. The automatic configuration may be selected to automaticallyestablishes system operation consistent with energy code requirementssuch as California Title 24 and ASHRAE 2010.

EXAMPLES

A 2-load on/off Room Controller and a 2-button wall switch—each buttonis bound to one load each for manual on/manual off operation.

A 2-load on/off Room Controller, a 2-button wall switch, and anoccupancy sensor—each button is bound to one load each for manualon/off, the sensor controls the first load as automatic on/off(overrides the switch to turn load off automatically) and manual on (viathe switch)/automatic off for the second load.

A 2-load on/off room controller and an occupancy sensor—each load iscontrolled by the sensor as automatic on/off.

A 2-load on/off room controller, a 3-button switch, an occupancy sensor,and a plug load controller—the first two buttons are bound one each tothe two loads, the third button is unbound, the first load is controlledby the occupancy sensor for automatic on/off (sensor overrides theswitch for automatic off) and the second load is controlled by thesensor for manual on/automatic off, the plug load is automaticallycontrolled only by the occupancy sensor for automatic on/off.

Priority Array State Machine

The priority array state machine is the algorithm that determines thestate of an electrical load and the algorithm is driven by controlsignals which are called events. Events feeding the state machine arrivevia the low voltage communication network or bus. The device originatingthe event is irrelevant to the state machine processing, however, systemlevel events like Shed and Schedule can also originate in the lowvoltage communication network.

Each controller includes a priority array state machine for every loadit controls. A suitable priority array state machine may have a binaryoutput or it may have multiple levels to accommodate dimming loads orother similar device demands. Some events may be internally generated bythe state machine. Different types of events have different priorities,the active event with the highest priority is determines action taken bythe controller.

Automatic Commissioning

Most energy-efficient scenario

Sensor only: Auto-ON

Sensor and Switch: Manual-ON/Auto-ON, 2-relay RC:

Relay 1: Auto-ON

Relay 2: Manual-ON

Controller devices arbitrate to decide Master

Device 10 and MAC address

Highest becomes master controller device

Master controller device in charge of load enumeration

Low Voltage Power and Communication Network Characteristics

Provides default behavior upon initial installation of devices in thenetwork

On Power Up the controller devices arbitrate to decide who becomes theMaster controller device

Master controller device is in charge of:

-   -   Enumerating the Loads (assigning individual IDs).    -   Commission Load Switches    -   Commission Scene Switches    -   Commission Sensors

Master Arbitration and Load Enumeration

Each controller device has a Device Type ID and a MAC address

An RC-101 and an RC-102 do not have the same Device Type ID

Higher Device Type ID has precedence

Within the same Device Type 10, higher MAC address has precedence

The controller device with highest Device Type ID/MAC address willbecome the master controller device.

Precedence level is maintained for Load Enumeration, thus the assignmentof Load IDs is predictable (next slide has the details)

If automatic initial commissioning has not been locked out then it willhappen every time the system powers up.

Manual restart of automatic initial commissioning will be needed inspecial circumstances.

If when adding a new RCI it gets powered up BEFORE plugging the RJ45jack

When adding an controller device that had been previously commissionedin another network.

Switch and Load Binding

It is always predictable, you will know which Push Button in the Switchwill control which Load or set of loads at the time they are been wired

Each switch binds its buttons to the Loads in the space so that no Loadis left unbound (you can control all loads in the space from everyswitch)

Two easy to remember rules are followed by each Switch:

1. If number of buttons>number of loads then Each button is bound toeach load in sequence, the extra buttons will control nothing and willblink 3 times at a ½ hz Hz rate

2. If number—of—buttons<=number—of—loads then Buttons get assigned toindividual loads, the last button on every switch controls all remainingloads

For example, In a room with 5 loads, an 5W-102 switch and an 5W-103switch

Button 1 of 5W-102 will control load 1

Button 2 of 5W-102 will control loads 2, 3, 4 and 5

Button 1 of 5W-103 will control load 1

Button 2 of 5W-103 will control load 2

Button 3 of 5W-103 will control loads 3, 4 and 5

It is expected that most rooms will have switches with the same numberof buttons as loads are to be installed, PnG is all these rooms willever need.

Selective Commissioning

Config button and LED to enter/exit

Press & hold config button for 2 sec on any device

Config LED of ALL devices blink

1st load turns on, all other loads are off

Assigned button LED lights. Pressing the button will deselect

Selecting/Unselecting loads with sensors is done via up/down buttons

-   -   Press ANY config button, system goes to next load    -   Press & hold ANY config button for 2 sec will exit PnL    -   Press & hold ANY config button for 10 sec will clear ALL devices        and restart PnG

Power failure Memory

-   -   Provides customized behavior without the need of a commissioning        tool    -   Master RC arbitration and Load enumeration from PnG remain valid    -   PnL allows:        -   Custom binding between Switches and Loads        -   Area separation based on Dcc Sensor coverage (not required            by Marketing)        -   Scene assignments        -   Room Modules configuration

Selective Commissioning Sequence of Operation

Config Button and Config LED

Every IRB device has a Config button and LED that allows the IRB networkto enter into PnL mode

Pressing the config button for two seconds gets the device into localConfig mode (we are not in PnL mode yet). Local Config mode is dependanton the device

Pressing the Config button again for two extra seconds will cause theIRB to get into PnL mode (if it hasnJt been locked out)

PnL mode

PnL is controlled by the Master controller device upon entering PnL alldevices will flash their Config LED and the Master RC will shut down allloads except the 1st one (only one Load is active during PnL)

While the load is active switches that have button(s} bound to such loadwill turn ON the respective LED(s)

The user can then create of destroy bindings by pressing the pushbuttons only those with the LED turned ON will be bound to the activeload. Other devices (Room Modules,Occ Sensors,etc) behave differentlyduring PnL

Pressing the Config button briefly (anywhere) will instruct the MasterRC to go to the next load in the sequence.

Pressing the Config button (anywhere) for two seconds will instruct theMaster RC to exit selective commissioning

Low voltage Power and Communication Network Characteristics:

Free Topology up to 1000 feet of wire

Communications and Power are delivered using CATS cable (RJ45connectivity at every device)

Up to 48 devices can be connected for communication

Power provided by the controller devices

Additive power (if code allows)

Power Supply(ies) limit the number of devices that can be connected.

protocol:

Supports up to 64 loads (not the same as CONTROLLER DEVICEs) in the room

Collision avoidance and collision detection implemented

Load and Scene control support PnG and PnL capable Unicast} Multicastand Broadcast addressing types available

Network Load and Scene Control

Load Control

Switch buttons can be explicitly bound to control individual loads or agroup of them.

There can be as many different groups as there are buttons in the lowvoltage power and communication network

Switch buttons know which loads are part of their group, thus they cantrack them down to display the status of the group

Scene Control

IRB networks can be logically separated in up to 4 areas, normally DccSensor

coverage will determine such areas (is this required? Let's discusslater)

Each Load in the IRB can belong to only one area

Each area has 16 scenes associated with them, 8 are free for the user toconfigure, the rest are reserved by the IRB protocol (Dcc Sensors,Daylight

Controllers and System Level events)

Scene control devices (Scene Switch, Dcc Sensor, Daylight

Control, etc) do not necessarily need to know which loads respond to theScene Commands

Unique identifier in each device allows multiples of the same devicetype to coordinate the numbering of each input or output on each device,referred to enumeration within the context of establishing an orderedlist, a master-slave(s) relationship, or a priority level. It ispreferred that the highest number establish the first in the list, themaster, or the first priority.

Secondary unique identifier scheme is used amongst device families,e.g., a 2-load room controller identifier would be selected from a groupwith a higher sequence of numbers than a 1-load room controlleridentifier, thereby ensuring the a 2-load room controller will alwayshave a higher numbered identifier than a 1-load room controller, e.g.,to guarantee that a 2-load room controller will always be a master to a1-load room controller in an installation using one of each type of roomcontroller.

On initial application of power to the system, each device broadcastsits identifier to establish enumeration with devices of the same type orfamily using an arbitration process. The result is that each device onthe low voltage power and communication network 14 establishes a uniqueidentifier for each of its inputs and outputs, thereby establishing anordered list of inputs and an ordered list of outputs for the lowvoltage power and communication network 14 as a whole. It is preferredthat the enumeration process be disabled once the system has beenmanually commissioned so that, in the event of power loss, the systemdoes not attempt to re-enumerate and erase bindings set by the manualcommissioning process.

The electrical load control system automatically establishes systemoperation consistent with energy code requirements such as CaliforniaTitle 24 and ASHRAE 2010.

EXAMPLES

A 2-load on/off Room Controller and a 2-button wall switch—each buttonis bound to one load each for manual on/manual off operation.

A 2-load on/off Room Controller, a 2-button wall switch, and anoccupancy sensor—each button is bound to one load each for manualon/off, the sensor controls the first load as automatic on/off(overrides the switch to turn load off automatically) and manual on (viathe switch)/automatic off for the second load.

A 2-load on/off room controller and an occupancy sensor—each load iscontrolled by the sensor as automatic on/off.

A 2-load on/off room controller, a 3-button switch, an occupancy sensor,and a plug load controller—the first two buttons are bound one each tothe two loads, the third button is unbound, the first load is controlledby the occupancy sensor for automatic on/off (sensor overrides theswitch for automatic off) and the second load is controlled by thesensor for manual on/automatic off, the plug load is automaticallycontrolled only by the occupancy sensor for automatic on/off.

6. Plug n Go automatically binds loads to switches and adjusts for anunequal number of loads versus switches.

EXAMPLES

a. A 3-load on/off room controller and a 1-button wall switch—all loadsare bound to the 1-button.

b. A 3-load room controller and a 2-button wall switch—the first load isbound to the first button, the remaining loads are bound to the secondbutton.

c. A 3-load room controller and a 3-button wall switch—each load isbound to just one button, first-to-first, second-to-second andthird-to-third.

d. A 3-load room controller and a 4-button wall switch—the first threeloads are bound to the first three buttons as described above, thefourth button is unbound and blinks its LED when pressed to indicate itsunbound status.

Referring now to FIG. 2, electrical load control system networks such assystems 10 and 50 may be connected to one another through a standardbackbone such as BACNet (Building Automation and Control Network 51. Inthis case, low voltage power and communication network 14 must havespecial capability to interface to such a backbone. A separate interfacemodule such as building network modules 52 in layer 54 is attachable tocontroller devices to establish the link between the low voltage powerand communication network 14 and the backbone 51. The unique feature ofthis interface is that it makes this interface transparent to eitherside of it. The backbone appears to be just another Room Device or RoomController to the Room Network, and the Low voltage power andcommunication network 14 components appear to be standard components ofthe chosen backbone system. This unique feature allows easy connectionto the chosen backbone system and easy control the Low voltage power andcommunication network 14 components by the master controller in thebackbone system. This setup now allows Room Devices 10 control loadsoutside of the Room Network. Indeed, this is a good example of asituation wherein it is advantageous to allow the number of logicalloads in the Low voltage power and communication network 14 to begreater than the number of physical loads on the Room Network.

The discussion above uses line power to designate electrical powerdelivered to loads to perform work. In the United States line power is60 cycle, 110 volt AC power. Any other suitable power source may be usedas line power with appropriate component configuration for higher powerdemands.

While the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods have beendescribed in reference to the environment in which they were developed,they are merely illustrative of the principles of the inventions. Otherembodiments and configurations may be devised without departing from thespirit of the inventions and the scope of the appended claims.

1. A system for controlling the application of electrical line power toa plurality of electrical loads comprising: a low voltage power andcommunication network; one or more load control devices operativelyconnected to the low voltage power and communication network, each loadcontrol device receiving electrical power from the low voltage power andcommunication network and transmitting one or more identificationsignals and one or more control signals through the low voltage powerand communication network, the one or more control signals forindirectly controlling the application of electrical power to one ormore of the plurality of electrical loads; at least one controllerdevice operatively connected to the one or more load control devicesthrough the low voltage power and communication network, said at leastone controller device having a configuration means and providingelectrical power to the low voltage power and communication network;processing means in each of the at least one controller devices, saidprocessing means for receiving and processing identification signalsfrom each of the one or more load control devices and each of the one ofmore controller devices and the plurality of loads and using theconfiguration means to generate a plurality of configuration signalsupon initial application of electrical power to the system, theprocessing means transmitting the plurality of configuration signals tothe one or more load control devices and the one of more controllerdevices, the processing means further for receiving and processing oneor more control signals from the one or more power control elements anddirectly controlling the application of electrical power to one or moreof the plurality of electrical loads according to the one or morecontrol signals and the plurality of configuration signals.
 2. A systemfor controlling the application of electrical line power to a pluralityof electrical loads comprising: a low voltage power and communicationnetwork; one or more load control devices operatively connected to thelow voltage power and communication network, each load control devicereceiving electrical power from the low voltage power and communicationnetwork and transmitting one or more configuration signals and one ormore control signals through the low voltage communication network, theone or more control signals for indirectly controlling the applicationof electrical power to one or more of the plurality of electrical loads;at least one controller device operatively connected to the one or moreload control devices through the low voltage communication network, eachcontroller device having one or more line power control elements forcontrolling the application of line power to one or more of theplurality of loads, the at least one controller device providingelectrical power to the low voltage communication network; processingmeans in each of the at least one controller devices, the processingmeans for receiving and processing configuration signals from each ofthe one or more load control devices and associating the control signalsfrom a load control device to one or more of the one or more line powercontrol elements according to the configuration signals, the processingmeans further for receiving and processing one or more control signalsfrom the one or more load control devices and operating the line powercontrol elements associated with the one or more control signalsaccording to the one or more control signals.